Are the digital traces we see on social media giving us a distorted view of political polarization?
A new paper by DNDS PhD graduate Yijing Chen, faculty member Elisa Omodei, and their co-authors explores this question. The study shows that measurements based only on engagement forms recorded by public APIs—such as commenting on YouTube—can portray a more segregated picture of political polarization than those based on less visible engagement, like viewing behavior.